The 2026 Annual Academy Mock Trial Competition was held at the Joseph F. Weis, Jr. United States Courthouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on February 19th & February 20th.

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First Place Advocate:
Jesse Bell-Taylor, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

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Second Place Advocate (tie):

Kat Gingolaski, Duquesne University Thomas R. Kline School of Law
Reilly Heidecker, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

 

First Place Team: University of Pittsburgh School of Law

Represented by: Jesse Bell-Taylor and Reilly Heidecker

 

Second Place Team: University of Akron School of Law

Represented by: Hayley Bunner and Abigail Calderone

 

The Competition originated in 1963 as a friendly competition between the two area law schools, Duquesne University and the University of Pittsburgh. Today, the Competition has flourished to include law schools from the East Coast and Midwest regions.

 

The Competition has become one of the most prestigious advocacy competitions because of several unique features. One is the involvement of Federal and Pennsylvania State Judges.  Another feature is that the competition takes place in actual Federal Courtrooms.  Each competing team is paired with a medical witness who participates as that team’s expert witness, affording them the unique opportunity to direct and cross-examine actual medical experts as part of the experience.  Each courtroom has a student court reporter from a local court reporting school and a jury of Allegheny County High School students serving as jurors, and five trial lawyer members of the Academy of Trial Lawyers.

 

The Competition includes the participation of over 150 volunteers including Academy members, federal court judges, medical witnesses, court reporters, and Allegheny County high school students. The Competition, in the words of a former participant, “offers a seamless transition from classroom to courtroom.”

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​​​For information about the 2027 Academy of Mock Trial Competition, please contact the Academy of Trial Lawyers at 412.343.9266 or by email at academy@atlac.org.

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Chairs of the 2027 Competition

Brittani Hassen, Chair

Margaret Coleman, 1st Vice Chair

Megan Dirlam, 2nd Vice Chair

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